Farnesoid X Receptor (FXR) is an orphan nuclear receptor initially identified from a rat liver cDNA library (B M. Forman, et al., Cell 81:687-693 (1995)) that is most closely related to the insect ecdysone receptor. FXR is a member of the nuclear receptor family of ligand-activated transcription factors that includes receptors for the steroid, retinoid, and thyroid hormones (D J. Mangelsdorf, et al., Cell 83:841-850 (1995)). Northern and in situ analysis show that FXR is most abundantly expressed in the liver, intestine, kidney, and adrenal (B M. Forman, et al., Cell 81:687-693 (1995) and W. Seol, et al., Mol. Endocrinnol. 9:72-85 (1995)). FXR binds to DNA as a heterodimer with the 9-cis retinoic acid receptor (RXR). The FXR/RXR heterodimer preferentially binds to response elements composed of two nuclear receptor half sites of the consensus AG(G/T)TCA organized as an inverted repeat and separated by a single nucleotide (IR-1 motif) (B M. Forman, et al., Cell 81:687-693 (1995)). An early report showed that rat FXR is activated by micromolar concentrations of farnesoids such as farnesol and juvenile hormone (B M. Forman, et al., Cell 81:687-693 (1995)). However, these compounds failed to activate the mouse and human FXR, leaving the nature of the endogenous FXR ligand in doubt. Several naturally-occurring bile acids bind to and activate FXR at physiological concentrations (PCT WO 00/37077, published 29 Jun. 2000)). As discussed therein, the bile acids that serve as FXR ligands include chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA), deoxycholic acid (DCA), lithocholic acid (LCA), and the taurine and glycine conjugates of these bile acids.
Bile acids are cholesterol metabolites that are formed in the liver and secreted into the duodenum of the intestine, where they have important roles in the solubilization and absorption of dietary lipids and vitamins. Most bile acids (˜95%) are subsequently reabsorbed in the ileum and returned to the liver via the enterohepatic circulatory system. The conversion of cholesterol to bile acids in the liver is under feedback regulation: bile acids down-regulate the transcription of cytochrome P450 7a (CYP7a), which encodes the enzyme that catalyzes the rate limiting step in bile acid biosynthesis. There are data to suggest that FXR is involved in the repression of CYP7a expression by bile acids, although the precise mechanism remains unclear (D W. Russell, Cell 97:539-542 (1999)). In the ileum, bile acids induce the expression of the intestinal bile acid binding protein (IBABP), a cytoplasmic protein which binds bile acids with high affinity and may be involved in their cellular uptake and trafficking. Two groups have now demonstrated that bile acids mediate their effects on IBABP expression through activation of FXR, which binds to an IR-1 type response element that is conserved in the human, rat, and mouse IBABP gene promoters (14; 17). Thus FXR is involved in both the stimulation (IBABP) and the repression (CYP7a) of target genes involved in bile acid and cholesterol homeostasis.
European Patent No. 0 312 867, published 5 May 1992 to Giuliana S.p.A. describes 6-methyl derivatives of natural biliary acids such as ursodeoxycholic acid, ursocholic acid, chenodeoxycholic acid and cholic acid.
WO 02/072598 discloses cholanoic acid derivatives having the following structure:

wherein R is ethyl, propyl and allyl.